Unrequited Love

The Orb of night shines its light of love only on you-
I cannot love another- fate has decided that this is the truth-
my heart is determined to love you only-
my soul is connected to you alone-
to seek someone else is a futile endeavor-
a waste of time-
I will love you forever-
I long for your kisses-
they elude me it's true-
I long to caress you-
yet this is a dream-
more like a nightmare-often it seems-
your good morning dear I never will hear-
your good night my love will not touch my ears-
the sun is blocked by my cloud of despair-
like Sisyphus pushing a rock up a hill-
I always will long yet never fulfill-
at best you love me just as a friend-
you find it amusing that I ache for your touch-
that I find you attractive-
that I love you so much-
you find it funny that I die at your sight-
I die just a little-Yes it is true-
I die for wanting yet not having you-
Your spirit, your beauty will haunt me forever-
You are the only-there can be no other

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Editor’s Note

The number one question our editors receive is—what do the editors and judges look for when judging the contest? The number one answer we give is creativity. Unlike prose, writing composed in everyday language, poetry is considered a creative art and requires a different type of effort and a certain level of depth. Of the thousands of poems entered in each contest, the ones that catch our judges’ eyes are the ones that remove us, even just slightly, from the scope of everyday life by using language that is interesting, specific, vivid, obscure, compelling, figurative, and so on. Oftentimes, poems are pulled aside for a second look based simply on certain words that intrigued the reader. So first and foremost, be sure your poetry is written using creative language. Take general ideas and make them personal. In his infamous book De/Compositions: 101 Good Poems Gone Wrong, W. D. Snodgrass imparts, “We cannot honestly discuss or represent our lives, any more than our poems, without using ideational language.”